Information Guide: Elections in Europe

A guide to information sources on elections that have taken place in European countries in 2015, with hyperlinks to further sources of information within European Sources Online and on external websites

Austria’s thrilling elections will have far-reaching impact on political developments in the EU. EPIN Commentary No. 32, May 2016

After a passionate two-day election, Alexander Van Der Bellen (supported by the Greens) narrowly defeated his far-right wing opponent, Norbert Hofer (Freedom Party of Austria or FPÖ), thereby becoming Austria’s new President (50.3% vs 49.7%). Notably, the ecologist candidate only managed to win thanks to the postal votes counted on the day after the polls closed, whereas anti-EU Hofer was still leading by some 144,000 votes on the previous evening. Such a narrow defeat is likely to have long-term implications for Austrian and European politics.

The 2015 National Elections in Switzerland: Renewed Polarization and Shift to the Right

The 2015 election to the Swiss Parliament marks a return to an already observed trend that was only interrupted in 2011: a shift to the right and an increase in polarization. The vote share of the nationalist-conservative Swiss People's Party (SVP) has now reached a historical height of 29.4% (+2.8). This note discusses why cantons matter in the Swiss national elections, and to what degree elections have become nationalized. Institutionally, the 26 cantons serve as electoral districts. This leads to a highly disproportional electoral system and has magnified the minor vote shifts to a slightly more pronounced shift in seats, with the right now holding a tiny majority of 101 of 200 seats in the first chamber. The two winners, the SVP and the Liberals, also had most campaign funds at their disposal. They were able to guide an extensive nationwide campaign in which they advocated their core issues instead of candidates. Other parties only advertised at the cantonal level.

Drivers of populism - A four-country comparison of party communication in the run-up to the 2014 European Parliament elections

The aim of this paper is to analyze what different types of populist communication styles emerged during the 2014 EP election campaign and under which conditions political parties selected specific populist communication styles. To do this, a comparative quantitative content analysis of press releases in the run-up of the latest EP elections has been conducted for parties in France, Germany, Austria and Greece. The paper presents a definition of populism based on the contemporary academic discourse, which focuses on the transnational nature of the European political field. It is shown that populist party communication is more pronounced on the fringes of the political spectrum and in countries struggling with severe macroeconomic difficulties. Contrary to intuitive expectations, the perceived populist rhetoric of exclusivity in the context of the European sovereign debt crisis, which is identified as a central feature of right-wing populism, barely takes place within populist party communication.

Survey Research Center National Elections Study

l-r Philip Converse, asst. study director, Warren E. Miller research associate, Angus Campbell, dir.

Survey Research Center National Elections Study

1-r Philip Converse, asst. study director, Warren E. Miller research associate, Angus Campbell, dir.

Survey Research Center National Elections Study

l-r: Philip Converse, asst. study director, Warren E. Miller research associate, Angus Campbell, dir.

Survey Research Center National Elections Study

l-r; Philip Converse, asst. study director, Warren E. Miller research associate, Angus Campbell, dir.

El Salvador's 1985 elections : Legislative Assembly and municipal councils.

Cover title.

The law relating to corrupt and illegal practices at Parliamentary, municipal and other elections, and the practice on election petitions, with an appendix of statutes, rules and forms.

Mode of access: Internet.

European elections, June 7-10, 1979.

Mode of access: Internet.

Plan of a direct election law for determining true primary and final elections [...].

Mode of access: Internet.

County electors act, 1888: with notes on the changes made in the law of parliamentary and municipal registration for the purpose of forming a register of persons qualified to vote at elections of county and district councillors.

Mode of access: Internet.

Presidential and parliamentary elections in Romania, September 27, 1992 : a report /

"November 1992"